15/01/2009 Job Losses: Time for Radical Action

One of the knock-on effects of the 'credit crunch' is rising job losses. A staggering 50,000+ jobs have been shed in the Banking industry. Many large firms are either planning job losses (BT & Wimpy for example) or are discussing salary cuts with the establishment Unions (Corus & JCB amongst others). Notably 'foreign' owned companies such as Santander & Electrolux are shedding a disproportionate numbers of British staff.

As with all 'depressions' each loss begets another as consumer expenditure shrinks and lack of credit ultimately means firms with a tight cash flow go under.

Despite all this doom & gloom we have heard little from our established Trade Unions other than acting as middle-men for phased in redundancies and pay cuts. Since many of them are members or supporters of the Labour Government we assume their protests are muted by a desire to 'protect' those with whom they are politically affiliated.

AGENTS OF THE GOVERNMENT

Solidarity Trade Union General Secretary Patrick Harrington said "Establishment Trade Unions are acting as agents of the Government. They have a clear conflict of interest. Many are Labour Party members and officials. They are affiliated to the Governing Party and many hope for favours from them. British workers deserve better than this from their Union Representatives.

He added "This Government has spent billions of taxpayers money propping up a bloated and greedy financial sector ultimately responsible for our financial crisis. We suggest that they take controlling stakes wherever public money is used to save banks or other financial institutions and look to form a National Bank."

"I note that the Bank of England is considering 'quantitative easing'. I have to ask why it is now possible to print billions in currency which the Government can then 'spend' into the economy but not regularly through a National Bank system? We need to reflect on how we finance our economy much more deeply if we are to avoid these cycles of boom and bust and the consequent misery."

"We urge the government to use the banking assets they now own to pay off their debts, buy stakes in key companies and provide investment funds for small businesses. Furthermore they must drastically reduce the inflow of further migrant workers which will see exiting workers being priced out of a job and wages reduced even further".